Plan approved for hotel on Grand Resort site in Pigeon Forge

Work on the Pigeon Forge Convention Hotel and Resort, seen in this rendering, halted earlier this year when a new site plan needed approval.

PIGEON FORGE —

Construction on the new Pigeon Forge Convention Hotel and Resort could resume soon now that the Planning Commission has approved a new site plan for the facility, which is located on the old site of the Grand Resort Hotel and Convention Center.

The new hotel will have a few fewer rooms, at 400, and will have an outdoor pool instead of an indoor pool. The exterior will be refurbished, along with the infrastructure and interior of the rooms, engineer Jimmy Taylor said Tuesday. It will still feature a 30,000 square foot convention center along one side.

In the area nearest the Parkway, the developers hope to have a barbecue restaurant and some other shops.

Workers began the renovations earlier this year by gutting the old facility, removing the heating and air system, electrical wiring and other infrastructure from the building. But there’s been little additional work since then because developers had to get the new site plan finished and approved by the planning commission before they could start rebuilding it.

Now they can start that work.

Also Tuesday, the commission:

Approved a site plan for a warehouse facility on Two View Road

Approved a site plan for a warehouse on Dixie Avenue

Approved a site plan for a new Krispy Kreme on the Parkway

Approved a site plan for a new Popeye’s Restaurant at 2683 Parkway

Approved a site plan for a Harpoon Harry’s restaurnat on Community Center Drive